Sensory Integration: Get Those Motor Skills Moving!

Have you noticed that your child struggles to keep up with other kids? Do they have trouble navigating a new playground? Did your Mama Gut ever make you feel like they had delays learning to crawl or walk?

If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, they might have underlying sensory issues. At first it might not make sense that sensory differences can impact your child’s ability to learn new skills, but every part of our body is interconnected. Sensory information is the foundation we build motor skills on. Without our sense of touch and balance, we would struggle to navigate the world. The feedback in our feet tells you whether the floor is even, whether the ground is sturdy, and how to balance on the floor. If these senses are amplified or silenced too much, it can lead to discomfort and poor feedback from our surroundings. 

Our sense of touch is also deeply linked to our sense of balance and our ability to tell where our limbs are without looking at them. If we can’t get a clear idea of our surroundings and how we’re interacting with them, it’s difficult to learn how to crawl in them, let alone walk, run, or climb. Sensory issues can also make it difficult to concentrate on the task at hand. Occupational therapy acknowledges and embraces the connection between our senses and the rest of our body to ensure your child gets the most complete and effective care possible. We don’t want to put your child through years of therapy solely working on their motor symptoms when we could target the sensory causes behind those symptoms and help them improve within months!

If you’re looking for Los Angeles based occupational therapy for sensory integration, then you’re in the right place! Here at Theraplay LA we offer in-home, in clinic, and telehealth sensory integration sessions. We know that watching your child struggle with everyday activities can be overwhelming, which is why we apply strategies specifically tailored to provide quick and lasting results. We’re here to support your child through every step towards sensory integration!